Even better, Helm & Abdelkader (which will probably be closer to $2M) and a veteran defenseman and no 40 year olds. At all.
Posted by Garth on 07/07/10 at 01:20 PM ET

Our captain is 40’something.
Great signing at a great price for Eaves.

Posted by
MOWingsfan19
from I really like our team on 07/07/10 at 03:32 PM ET

Kindl has to play. So you’re looking for a #7, not a #6.

Yeah, he has to play, I don’t expect that they’ll having him playing 20 minutes a night every night.

My understanding is that they’re looking for a #5 to be the safe, consistent, no-worry guy on the 3rd pairing with Ericsson and Kindl battling it out for #6. I’d guess they’re looking to sign someone for a year with the hopes that next year Ericsson and Kindl would be the full-time third pairing.

I don’t dislike older players. I dislike bringing in an older player who isn’t appreciably better than the young guys we have. And I dislike what I’m reading from Holland, because whenever he talks about Modano it seems that the first thing he says is “he’s a hometown boy”, and I think that is the worst reason to bring him in.

We do need a D-man. Badly.

Exactly. Need. Modano is not a need. He’s a want. He’s an “it would be cool to have him”, but we don’t need him.

People keep bringing up Dallas Drake, and it frustrates me because this isn’t anything near the same situation as when Drake was brought in.

When Drake was brought in, he filled several needs. He was the grit. He was a veteran presence who had drive to win a Stanley Cup before he retired. Three years ago we were in need of another veteran. Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Franzen, Cleary, Kronwall and Stuart were all in their mid-late 20s. They’re all “veteran presences” right now. And on top of them we still have Rafalski, Lidstrom, Homer, Draper and Bertuzzi. All “veteran presences”.

A veteran third-line forward isn’t anywhere on the “what we need” list.

Sure, Modano had more points last year than Miller, but this was Miller’s first full year in the league. Everyone was so high on him and now it’s: “Sorry, we don’t want you to possibly be a longterm part of this team because we want to bring in a 40 year old for one last lap. He played Little Caesar’s hockey, ya know”?

Hey, would it have been good if, at the end of 06-07, we brought in a 40 year old player for one year and cut Johan Franzen loose because the vet had gotten 35 points and Franzen only got 30?

People keep bringing up Dallas Drake, and it frustrates me because this isn’t anything near the same situation as when Drake was brought in

.

Not only is the situation different, but they are very different players, too, in both talent and temperament. Each provides different things to a team.

I agree with Garth that Modano falls into the “nice to have” category instead of the “need to have” category. That said, if he is inexpensive and costs no one else, I can get behind it if for no other reason than SOMEONE is going to have some weird injury in training camp, and that way the Red Wings have a spare forward among their flock.

I still think he thinks long and hard about spending another offseason training and then another season dealing with the travel, the grind, the nicks and bruises and the hassle, and decides that he’s had enough and it’s time to stop playing.